


just like a distant star

by pirateygoodness



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Crushes, F/F, Fluff, Ice Skating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 12:52:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17080673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pirateygoodness/pseuds/pirateygoodness
Summary: Nia misses the snow.National City has a lot of things, but it doesn't have four seasons the way that D.C. used to. None of the Earth holidays arehers, and that's alright, but she's always loved wintertime for the lights. She loves the cold weather, too, and National City has lights but it's not quite the same when she barely needs to wear a sweater to go see them. It's one of the hardest things about being in National City this winter.Winter is supposed to mean walking home at night during a fresh snowfall, listening to the way it makes the world seem quieter. It means bundling up and going for walks to look at all of the lights people put on their houses. It means taking her skates down to the local park, the one that the community center floods into a skating rink once it gets cold enough.Nia used to go skating every day in the winter, and it - like it's not a big deal, or anything. It's just that it's her first winter in a new city and she doesn't know anyone outside of work that well yet and nobody even knows how to ice skate here.





	just like a distant star

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "Winter Song" by Ingrid Michaelson and Sara Bareilles. 
> 
> Holiday prompt fill from Tumblr. Original prompt: "we’re going ice skating for the first time this year and it’s pretty obvious that you’re secretly an olympic figure skater or something how the hell are you so graceful you’re literally twirling around on one foot on a frictionless surface and i can barely make a left turn"

Nia misses the snow. 

National City has a lot of things, but it doesn't have four seasons the way that D.C. used to. None of the Earth holidays are _hers_ , and that's alright, but she's always loved wintertime for the lights. She loves the cold weather, too, and National City has lights but it's not quite the same when she barely needs to wear a sweater to go see them. It's one of the hardest things about being in National City this winter.

Winter is supposed to mean walking home at night during a fresh snowfall, listening to the way it makes the world seem quieter. It means bundling up and going for walks to look at all of the lights people put on their houses. It means taking her skates down to the local park, the one that the community center floods into a skating rink once it gets cold enough. 

Nia used to go skating every day in the winter, and it - like it's not a big deal, or anything. It's just that it's her first winter in a new city and she doesn't know anyone outside of work that well yet and nobody even knows how to ice skate here. 

(Okay it's maybe sort of a big deal. Maybe.) 

Kara tells her about the skating rink. 

Nia's tech savvy, she knows how to google _ice rink national city 2018_ and see what comes up, but most of the search hits are thinkpieces about the fact that the big city-run skating arena closed last year, and what that means about how City Hall is providing for people. They're - okay they're good articles, and Ms. Danvers even wrote one of them and Nia reads hers all the way to the end, even as her heart is sinking. 

(It's just because of the quality of Ms. Danvers - _Kara's_ \- prose. It has nothing to do with the fact that she's quietly debating driving to another state just to go skating while the office is closed for the holiday break because she misses home so much it hurts, sometimes.) 

Nia tries to bring it up professionally. She's just going to be super chill, and casually ask Ms - _Kara_ about the article that she wrote, just to see if there's any follow-up information. 

Except nothing Nia does is ever chill or casual and she ends up blurting out that she misses ice skating so much and the winters in National City are wrong and maybe she tears up a little bit in front of her boss and it's not the first time but _oh_ it would be really nice if it could be the last. 

Kara gets this look on her face, like Nia crying is just breaking her heart and she can't tell if that's making it better or worse but it's - something. It's making it something, that's for sure. 

 

Three days later, Kara storms into Nia's office with a flyer in her hand. She's grinning, her expression triumphant as she slaps the piece of paper onto Nia's keyboard so forcefully that Nia's pretty sure she hears the plastic casing crack a little. "Guess what I found," Kara says, in that declarative way she has.

Nia doesn't guess. But she does flip the flyer over, takes a minute to read it. 

The local professional hockey team is opening their arena up to the public for a holiday free skating event. It's - something inside Nia sort of opens up, softens a little. She's going to go _ice skating_. "This is - oh my gosh," Nia starts. She's stuttering, not sure how to get the words out when Kara swoops in to save her. 

"I thought we could go together," Kara says. "If you want some company. I've never been ice skating before." 

 

Nia dreams about it.

She can hardly get to sleep, the night before their skating day. She's excited, vibrating a little from the inside. She doesn't know if that's just because she finally gets to do something that feels like hers for the holidays or if it's because she's going ice skating with her _boss_ , beautiful, kind, strong Kara Danvers with bouncy hair who smells like sunshine. 

She dreams about it and it feels like one of her future dreams, everything floaty and grey-tinted and malleable. Nia's there, at the ice rink. She's skating in laps, her feet sure and gliding easily across the ice. There are lights strung up overhead; they're not necessary with the fluorescent arena lighting but they create an effect that's soft and a little magical. 

Dream-Nia turns the corner and sees Kara at the edge of the boards, tentatively easing her way onto the ice. She's always - Nia doesn't know _why_ , because as far as she knows Kara doesn't do a single sport, but Kara has this vaguely athletic vibe to her that made Nia assume she'd be great at this. Nia watches her dream-self slow, then stop next to Kara as she wobbles onto the ice. Dream-Nia says something, eyes warm and smiling and dream-Kara laughs. There's another wobble as she does, and before Nia in the dream can react she's overbalancing and her skates are coming out from under her. 

Kara lands on her butt, just hard enough that both versions of Nia wince. 

Nia wakes up. 

She feels warm all over, her heart fluttering and the memory of Kara's hand wrapped around her forearm, pulling her up from the ice. 

 

The ice rink is just like it was in her dream, but better. 

There's something about - it smells like skating, like hockey arena. The mix of cold air and rubber and the vague, sharp undertone of sports equipment is - Nia knows that's not necessarily a _good_ smell but it feels right. It smells like home. The lights are overhead and there's tinsel wrapped in between them to hide the cords, a little latticework of red and green sparkle that just makes everything seem a little easier. 

Kara's there already. She's smiling at Nia, holding a cup of hot cocoa and waving. The twinkle lights seem to form a halo around her, softening everything and it's just - it feels pretty impossible not to have a crush on her today. She's _gorgeous._

"You made it," Kara says. 

Nia grins. Kara has this way of looking at a person, making them feel like they're the only person in the room. Nia's seen her do it in interviews and on assignment, but whenever the full force of it is trained onto her she can't help but get flustered. She feels her cheeks flush; hopes she can play it off as being from the cold air. "I wouldn't miss it," Nia replies. "This is so cool." 

There are already people out on the ice, families with children wobbling around the ice holding chairs for balance and couples tentatively skating arm in arm. From overhead, pop radio is drifting down, a gentle rhythmic ambiance. It's nothing like the rink she remembers from back in D.C., but somehow it's still just perfect. 

"So what do I need to - " Kara gestures. 

"Oh. Oh you've like, really never gone skating before." 

Kara shakes her head. 

So Nia explains. About skate rental and how to put them on and that it's tricky at first but you just need to go slow. It's tough, explaining with Kara looking at her the way that she is, but if she focuses on the ice and the lights instead of Kara's face it's easier to get through it. 

Kara insists on watching while Nia puts her skates on, frowning in concentration as she looks at the laces and the pressure that Nia uses to lace them. Sometimes she'll do this, get fascinated with a little mundane thing and it just - she has to be an alien. Nia can feel it. 

Nia steps out onto the ice first. "I'll be there in a minute," Kara says. "I'm just gonna finish my cocoa." 

It feels so good. She's missed this, the cold air on her face and the way her feet glide and the way that everyone is sort of the same here on the ice. She does one lap, and then a few more. She passes Kara every time, watches as Kara progresses from drinking her cocoa to leaning over the boards and watching. The next one Kara's trying to sort out her skates, and then after that it's just like Nia's dream - she's wobbling out onto the ice, one tentative foot on the mats at the side and the other on the edge of the rink. 

The ice is rougher there, wet from so many skaters entering and exiting and it's a bad place to learn. Nia can see why she might slip. She slows, and hears herself say, "I didn't think there was anything you weren't good at." 

It's - well it's a very Nia thing to say, and that's probably why she says it. She's never been the best at flirting. But Kara laughs, her head tilting back and Nia can see it coming, this time. 

She waits to slow herself, leans down and catches Kara just as she starts to fall. Kara clings to Nia's coat a little bit, one of her hands on the boards and the other one fisted in Nia's collar. She smells like sunshine and hot cocoa now, warm and wintery and Nia swears she can actually feel her heart skip a beat over it. 

Kara's looking up at her, a little stunned and maybe that's from falling or maybe it's from being caught. It's hard for Nia to tell. "Thanks," she says. She's a little breathless, and Nia just - she likes girls too much to not have a lot of feelings over it. 

Nia helps right her, steers Kara over to the boards so that she can hang on with both hands and steady herself. Kara frowns. "Did you - see that coming?" she asks. 

As if Nia wasn't already flustered; now Kara's catching her out. "Maybe," she says. She resists the urge to chip at the ice with her toe pick out of shyness. 

"Well," Kara says. "I'm glad you were there to catch me." 

Nia can feel her emotions getting away from her, so many butterflies fluttering that she's not sure her body can contain them all. She needs skate another lap. "Come on," Nia says. She offers up her arm and Kara takes her by the hand, laces her warm, soft, beautiful fingers right through Nia's. 

Kara giggles, and squeezes Nia's hand. "Of course," she says. "Now that I know I'm in good hands."


End file.
